Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1887-10-06

stead of hopeless case. 'Spect he
knowed. too. for he was awful old;
most million, guess"
| Feel OF my head he said. sudden
ly bending his white-thatched pate
for Jacks inspection.
Feel that dentP''
Yes"
well, want allus a idiot. Old
Joe said so. He knowed for he was
worth most million. he was"
Jack unused. There certainly was a
''dent," as Boobies called it, in his
| head. A blow of some kind had
caused it probably. 1t seemed to him
that small piece of the skull was
pressed down upon the brain. Maybe
this was the cause of the lads idiocy.
| If removed. or rather lifted by a
| physician, might not it restore the
| boys lost intelligence? Jack had
read of such cases and mentally re-
solved 10 have the experiment tried as
soon as the coal mine paid out as
the saying is.
The days passed into weeks and the
weeks to month; the month grew
old, wanned and died. The next was
fast slipping away into the past, and
i still no answer came to the tender let
ter that Jack had sent to little Alice
Hale. like bark freighted with a
precious cargo of the hearts warmest
love.
Jacks face constantly wore wor-
ried appearance. The cannon-ball
fast mail train daily rushed by the lit
tie station as of yore, but no little
square envel opes were tossed off by
the mail clerk.
Every day Jacks question of,
'Any letter." would be answered by
a positive ..Noap!" from Boobies. who
was always on the platform when the
cannon-ball rushed by. Boobies. the
innocent was always there to wave his
hand in glad recognition of Engineer
Billy Parker or Mike Walsh, the fire.
man, and to shake his fist at Hamil-
ton, the conductor. whose kicking was
still fresh in Boobies memory. Jack
grew pale and thin and his jolly
smile became rarity. No letter.
| That meant, he sorrowfully con-
Guided, that she had not been true to
her half-spoken VOW. And at the
thought Jack sadly bent his head,
and Boobies, ever watchful. saw a
tear drop from between the sta
ton agents fingers as he covered his
face with his hands.
"Hoo!" exclaimed the lad. What
you a-cryin' forp'
| III ~
to strike him: Somebody ben a.
kickin' youP'
Yes" answered Jack slowly.
''Some body has kicked me very close to
the heart"
Boobies stared in owlish wonder.
Don't you think you're pretty big to
cry about itP'' he said presently.
Then they sat for long time listen
ing to the approach of the storm. that
for two hours had been muttering off
to the eastward. 1t had evidently
been tempest, a cyclone perhaps. off
there; but now its power was some
what spent Still the lightning that ac-
companied it was often almost blind
ing in its intensity.
Presently the storm broke, and the
thunder roared and crashed as
is seldom heard any where but
upon the Western plains. The
air seemed surcharged with cleo
tricity, and often there were
little points of electric fire dancing and
swapping on the instruments. ''Hoow
cackled Boobies. 'most as good as
Fourth of July" Then, while the
storm was at its height there came a
hurried. nervous rattling of the
sounder
Number 8 is calling usr' Jack
cried. and sprang to the key. He an
swered the call. and moment later
the sounder began to click frantically.
Jack grasped a pen and blank. He
as the sounder clicked them off when
there came binding flash of light
ming. accompanied instantly by deaf
ening crash of thunder. The bolt
seemed to have exploded in the room,
and the flash momentarily blinded
Boobies. Without a sound Jack fell
forward One hand dropped across
the sounder and hushed the click
ing of the instrument. Bob
bles sprang forward. and rails
ing Jack half-dragged and
half-carried him to the couch at the
opposite side of the room.
As quick as liberated the sounder
began again its frantic clicking. Like
flash the purport of the many les
sons in telegraphy Jack had labori-
ously beaten into his silly head. and he
had Immediately forgotten, seemed to
dawn upon Boobies, and clearly he
read the ticking of the instrument.
s.Washed out" were the last words of
the hurried message. Then came the
sound-signature of the operator at
Station Number 8. ten miles to the
east and just across Big Rock Creek.
With all the confidence of an ex-
perienced operator the boy placed his
fingers on the key. On the blank
before him lay the few words Jack had
penned.
At all hazards hold Nunaber-''
That was all. There the break had
come.
| Carefully the boy moved the little
switch and slowly clicked off the
words:
Struck By lightning. Go on four
number. ="
He waited with bated breath. In a
moment the answer began to tick,
and he wrote it as it came. The COM